Q02: Hybridizing

(This question is part of a larger subseries called Perpetual WIPs: Self-Published Authors. For the remaining questions, see here.)

Do you have an agent, and/or do you have plans to pursue traditional publishing as well? If so, how do you balance the two, and how do you decide what to self-publish and what to sub?

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I do not currently have an agent. When I was querying, I got a sense that my book wasn’t right for that path at the time. I am working on a few books that I will query to agents, including a contemporary YA.

I think each book can now have its own path, which is amazing. I write a lot of “experimental” works, where I like to play with different writing elements. These books will be self-published. Books that are wider in scope and focus on story and character are books I’d like to take on the traditional route.

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While I am by no means opposed to pursuing traditional publishing, it’s not in my short-term business plan at this time.  I’m just starting a series that will carry me through the next few years, and I’m not sure there would be a market for it with “traditional” publishing.  I have high hopes for it, though, and so will continue to go it alone for the time being.

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I do. I just signed with her, actually—and part of The Call was making sure she was comfortable with my decision to self pub. The nice thing about an agent is that it gives me options. Sure, I can self-pub all my books, but some are better suited for a traditional market, and she positions me to make that happen. It’s a book-by-book decision—genre and marketability usually informs the decisions.

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I do not have an agent, and at this time I’m not sure if I will pursue having one. Many of the markets/publishers who are looking for my kinds of books take direct submissions, and I’m not certain I need an agent at this point.

I am still trying to figure out the best path for my books right now. For me, it seems to be on a case-by-case basis. For example, right now I am writing a series that I really want to see completed. I am considering self-publishing it, just so I can retain control. But a standalone novel I’m considering might be a good candidate for a traditional deal. I’m also kind of waiting to see what happens. Publishing is changing every day.

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I do not have an agent at this time. However, I am actively querying a new project to agents. I would prefer to have one to help guide my career and reach large publishers.

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I am published with small-ish publishers under another pen name. I love seeing what publishers do in terms of editing and marketing. I do like working with them and am presently signing new contracts…but frankly, I haven’t been able to make anywhere near the same amount of money. It’s not just about the royalty percentage. My total sales for my self published books are higher than for my published ones.

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I have an agent for foreign and subsidiary rights, but I have no plans to pursue traditional publishing. Self-publishing works well for me, and unless a deal comes along that lets me sell more books, gain more exposure, or something else attractive, I’m happy where I am.

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I do have an agent, but not for the book I self-published. I signed with my agent after querying the next MS I wrote. I fully intend to go the traditional route for future books because I’ve determined that self-publishing just isn’t for me. Of course, I’ll never say never.

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I have an agent that deals with any more traditional situations – for example, she dealt with some audiobook and anthology rights for me recently. But my first route is going to be self publishing for the foreseeable future. I prefer to let traditional publishing pursue me. 😉

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I do have an agent, and we are pursuing traditional publishing for several different types of projects. We discuss each idea/manuscript on its own merits and make a decision on which avenue would best serve it.

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I would love to pursue traditional publishing with a few of my other projects. Deciding which to publish and which to save for possible sub is pretty easy — some manuscripts just have a more big market vibe, and I know that I would be confident pitching them to an agent. Balancing the two sounds like it will be tricky, so I want to be sure I’m ready before I take on a hybrid model.

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I do not currently have an agent. Right now, 60% of me would like to get an agent, the other 40% does not. But I would like to try traditional publishing at some point in the future. If I do not get an agent, I will choose to submit to publishing houses that accept unsolicited manuscripts. Knowing what to submit to an agent/publisher all comes down to knowing the market. I chose to self-publish my current books because I knew they had a niche audience that I could reach. I would choose a traditional publisher for the next one because it has a wider audience and would be easier to sell. That also makes it easier for me to sell as a self-publisher, too, but it will depend on whether or not I have the bandwidth to self-publish another project or not.

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I don’t as yet, though with every project I work on, I put it through the query process. You never know what will be the one that sticks.

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